Chapter 193: The Lecture on Martial Arts
Ultimately, under Lihito's persistent lobbying, the group ended up at a BBQ
restaurant. Thus, the famous Wagyu establishment Kogyu-En welcomed a massive
party of "ultra-VIP" customers:
Mitsunari Tokugawa, Metsudo Katahara, and Rama XIII.
Accompanying them were Gaolang, Retsu Kaioh, Ren Shiroki, Lihito, Arisa, Fusui
Kure, Sayaka Katahara, and a small army of bodyguards. As for "The Faceless Man"
Chiba Takayuki... he was still unconscious and had been shipped off to the
hospital.
To prevent any further chaos, the group wore minor disguises and booked two
large private VIP rooms to enjoy their leisure time. Although the trip was
impulsive, the restaurant Lihito recommended was top-tier, offering "refined
cuisine" suitable even for the elderly chairmen.
"...The flavor is excellent!" Rama XIII ate with pure delight, offering non-stop
praise. "Does this place have plans to open international branches? I'd highly
welcome it and provide full support!"
As he spoke, Rama noticed that Gaolang, sitting beside him, was unusually quiet.
Strange. Usually, Gaolang would be fussing over My food right about now... Rama
tilted his head with a worried pout, which finally made Gaolang snap back to
reality.
"Forgive me, Your Majesty. I was being discourteous." Gaolang immediately
reached out to help Rama grill his meat. Seeing this, Rama's usual serene smile
returned.
How could he not see through Gaolang's heart? To Rama, Gaolang was far more than
just a bodyguard; he was a trusted loyalist and a man he considered a brother.
For a "younger brother" who wasn't quite ready to lead, Rama needed a strong
"older brother." If that older brother wanted to sharpen his blade, how could
the younger brother stand in his way?
That was why Rama had accepted the invitation to the Kengan Annihilation Street
Brawl. He wanted to see how far Gaolang would go when surrounded by powerful
tigers.
Just make sure you 'come back' to me...
"..."
"I will continue to refine my skills," Gaolang said as he placed a piece of
grilled meat on Rama's plate. It sounded like casual small talk, but he knew
exactly what his King was worried about. "No matter what, I will train through
this tournament and move toward an even higher goal—this is for Your Majesty,
and for my own personal path."
"...Is that so?" Rama paused, then chuckled. "To use Arisa's brother's
words—nice, that's perfect."
Two days flew by.
Shinshinkai Headquarters.
It was time for another morning training session, but today was special. The
disciples weren't rushing into their drills; instead, they sat in disciplined
rows along the sides of the dojo.
At the very front of the crowd sat three men who weren't wearing Karate gi: Ren
Shiroki, Retsu Kaioh, and Gaolang Wongsawat.
These three masters had been invited by the current head of the Shinshinkai,
Katsumi Orochi, to serve as guest instructors for today's "Lecture on Martial
Arts." Retsu Kaioh was a frequent guest, but while he and Katsumi were chatting,
Retsu mentioned he was planning to visit the Soul Combat Hub. Katsumi
immediately called Ren and invited him to bring the group over.
When Ren received the invitation, Rama XIII happened to be calling Arisa to ask
about interesting landmarks in Tokyo.
Arisa: "..." Arisa: "Does wall art count? There's a massive painting of a
bald man fighting a tiger on the outside of the Shinshinkai Dojo." Rama
(delighted): "I shall contact them immediately!"
And so, the trio was "bundled" together and sent to the Shinshinkai HQ. Their
escort, of course, was Rama XIII. The Thai King was in high spirits. After
inquiring about dojo etiquette, he sat at the edge of the mat with five
bodyguards to quietly observe the lecture.
"..."
The Shinshinkai disciples—and even Atsushi Suedo, Ren, and Retsu—found their
eyes drifting toward Rama's corner.
"Ah, forgive the intrusion. Do not mind me," Rama said with a polite nod. "I am
only here as an observer. Although there are Shinshinkai branches in Thailand,
the atmosphere at the 'Main House' is far more interesting."
That's not the problem... the disciples thought in unison.
Having an observer wasn't an issue if the Master permitted it. The problem was
that Rama XIII was just too loud visually. Not only had he changed into
traditional Thai attire—a light-colored robe similar to a long skirt—but his
bodyguards had even scattered a few flower petals on the dojo floor.
They promised to clean up afterward and even offered to pay for a professional
floor waxing, but it was still incredibly distracting.
"..."
Atsushi Suedo paused, muttering under his breath, "Are these people for real?"
"What do you mean, 'these people'?" Gaolang overheard him, looking slightly
displeased. "His Majesty has already compromised enough. He wanted to ride an
elephant into this dojo, but we talked him out of it."
Ren laughed and patted Suedo on the shoulder. "I cleared it with Doppo-san. I
told him it was a matter of international diplomacy, so he agreed!"
Suedo: "..."
The bizarre atmosphere vanished the moment the lecture actually started—because
Gaolang stepped into the center of the mat to face Katsumi Orochi.
Most of those present were the elite disciples of the Shinshinkai. The moment
Gaolang dropped into his boxing stance, everyone felt the shift. This wasn't
some generic athlete. This "Boxer" was on a different level entirely. You had to
hold your breath just to watch; missing even a heartbeat could mean missing the
entire fight.
"Face the Shrine! BOW!" "Face each other! BOW!"
Following Suedo's commands, Gaolang and Katsumi dropped into their fighting
stances.
"Ready—BEGIN!!!"
Gaolang used his signature Philly Shell boxing stance. Katsumi Orochi, on the
other hand, held his fists lightly, one high and one low, standing bladed.
After a brief initial probe, Katsumi suddenly shifted his form. He flattened his
right palm and extended it forward, while his left fist rested near his hip. He
began a slow, deliberate "creeping" footwork.
Whoosh!
Gaolang's left fist fired out with lightning speed—the legendary Flash. However,
Katsumi Orochi evaded the first strike with a hair-breadth slip.
Stomp!
Katsumi stepped to the right, circling behind Gaolang's blind side, and fired a
rapid right straight toward his back.
Thwack!
Gaolang absorbed the hit with his massive deltoid muscle, simultaneously
twisting his waist to unleash a devastating right hook. Katsumi tried to press
the punch down with his palm, but the sheer force of Gaolang's torque drove his
hand upward. The hook was tracking straight for Katsumi's jaw.
In that heartbeat, Katsumi used Gaolang's rising hook as a "stepping stone." He
leaped upward, performing a mid-air rotation.
"Ohh!!" The disciples gasped.
But the next instant, Gaolang's follow-up was already there. A right straight
boomed out, slamming into Katsumi's crossed forearms. Mid-air, Katsumi was
launched backward toward the dojo wall.
However, as the "Final Weapon" of Karate, Katsumi didn't just crash. The moment
his feet touched the wall, he coiled and lunged, "pinging" off the surface like
a bullet. He adjusted his posture mid-air, aiming a punch at Gaolang's face.
"TAKE THIS!!"
Gaolang swung a roundhouse punch to meet him, swatting Katsumi's strike aside.
Katsumi finally touched down and immediately launched a high-roundhouse kick
toward Gaolang's arm. He used the contact to leap again, throwing another kick
from a different angle.
Zip!
Gaolang ducked to evade, but Katsumi found a gap, launching a low-level straight
punch in pursuit.
"Hah!"
Faced with this, Gaolang dropped even lower, nearly lying flat on the floor with
only one shin anchored to the mat. From that horizontal angle, he fired a punch
aimed directly at Katsumi's ankle. His core strength was like a coiled steel
spring!
Bang!
Katsumi lost his balance and nearly fell, saved only by his other foot touching
down in time to let him leap back and reset the distance.
DING!
The bell rang. The disciples finally exhaled a collective sigh of relief.
"Three minutes are up..." Katsumi lifted his leg, rubbing his struck ankle. "I
thought for sure I'd see some Muay Thai today. I didn't expect your boxing to be
this hard to breach."
"This was just an exercise, not even a match," Gaolang said, rolling his neck.
"Besides, for me, Boxing and Muay Thai aren't a matter of 'which is stronger.'
They are simply different methods of striking."
Katsumi smiled and shook Gaolang's hand. "Well said. Thank you for coming
today."
As Gaolang returned to his seat, Retsu Kaioh was invited to the mat to
demonstrate with another disciple. Meanwhile, Ren Shiroki leaned over to
Gaolang.
"Hey, once the lecture is over, want to go a few rounds? You use Muay Thai."
Gaolang turned to Ren. "A duel? A practice? Or do you just want to 'see' Muay
Thai?"
"I want to see it," Ren answered honestly. "There's this... old master who asked me about my 'resolve.' He's a specialist in Muay Thai. I want to see the 'feel' of someone else's moves to help me find my own path."
"..."
Gaolang found the request a bit strange, but he considered it seriously before
shaking his head. "I refuse."
Ren immediately had a mischievous idea. "Eh? Then maybe I'll ask Arisa to ask
Rama-sama to order you to do it?"
"Do not trouble His Majesty!" Gaolang knew it was a joke, but he still felt a
headache coming on. He explained:
"In my eyes, your 'Path' and mine are fundamentally different. On a purely
demonstrative level... I can give you no useful reference."
☆☆☆
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